Hoagy Carmichael's "Stardust"

[Buzz cook]

9. Interesting take.

No joke.

But even Carmichael played the song differently from one recording to the next. Here he plays with the melody and the time is much more legato.

Tatum did work the chords with Stardust as he did with all his songs, though less so here. Obliterates seems a too strong word, because the song does act as an anchor to Tatum's flights and it remains to the end.

Similarly John Coltrane and friends play all around the melody, but it is the melody that gives them structure. That is the strength of the song. It can be bent to the performers whim and it still shines through.

And here we have a take on the song by Dave Brubeck.

What is a songs integrity? Are we wed to the key and time signature on the sheet? How many trills and grace notes, how many places on the circle of fifths can we go, before we break the song?

Louie Armstrong once said there are only two types of music; good and bad.